Texas Hold'em Hand Selection
One of the most important things you should learn about Hold’em is hand selection. This means knowing which hands you should hold and which hands you should fold.
Many people new to poker fail to grasp this concept and hold hands that they should definitely fold in some sort of vague hope that that they will get a card that will make them a good hand or that they will be able to bluff their way out of trouble. That is why they lose.
Good hand selection is key to playing good poker. The decision to hold or fold should be based on a number of parameters all of which are quantifiable so there is no little luck involved. You need to determine the strength of your hand which means how it compares with all possible hands that are available. From this you can determine its relative merit. Its relative merit is not constant but is dependant on table position and what has happened before. The decision of whether to hold or to fold is simply a function of these last two parameters.
The manner in which the relative merit changes with respect to table position is easy to understand. If you are playing from an early position than the relative merit has a lower value than if you are playing at a late position. In simple terms this means that you need a stronger hand to continue from an early position than you do from a late position. As an example, if you are in a middle position then calling with, say a pair of nines, is fine, whereas this is certainly a hand you should fold in an early position.
After the flop you now have much more information. There are only two cards to go and you can quickly see what the chances are of getting a good hand. Certainly you will need a top pair or better to carry on. If the best you can do at this stage is a small pair then you should fold.
After the turn all should be clear. If you have the best hand then bet otherwise check. Be prepared to fold if you get raised and your hand is mediocre.
The river flows and now you know. If you did not get that which you hoped, then fold. If you might win, call.
That is all there is to it, it just takes some practice.